Manufacturing Manufacturing
Optimise production, quality and sustainability
Over the past year, signifi cant advancements in food manufacturing technologies have emerged as companies strive to improve effi ciency and achieve economies of scale. However, these developments have also raised important questions regarding how manufacturers can optimise production without compromising quality and sustainability. Martin Morris speaks to Constantinos Theodoropoulos, FRSC, professor of chemical and biochemical systems engineering at the University of Manchester, to explore these issues in depth.
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ecent ‘Black Swan’ events – notably the Covid-19 pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine – not only upended the global political order, but also had a significant economic impact on supply chains. The food manufacturing industry was no exception. Even so, food manufacturers had already been shifting, pre-Covid, towards digitally enhanced operations. Processes such as artificial intelligence (AI), virtual reality (VR), remote maintenance and other innovations had been adopted, which meant that any short-term damage from these disruptions was mitigated. Take the case of VR technologies, for example. These systems allow companies to create digital ‘twins’ of their physical production lines. By simulating various setting changes on these digital replicas before implementation, manufacturers can theoretically reduce the potential for disruption on the actual production lines. Factor in augmented reality (AR) technologies, and the upshot is that food
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manufacturers now enjoy greater visibility into the functioning of their production lines. In essence, this enables them to service equipment remotely from virtually anywhere in the world, thereby enhancing efficiency and safeguarding operations. “Digitalisation covers a wide range of operations, including traceability, optimisation of manufacturing (and of the supply chain), automation of hazard identification, and hazard and operability procedures, as well as quality control, smart packaging and labelling,” explains Constantinos Theodoropoulos, FRSC, professor of chemical and biochemical systems engineering at the University of Manchester. His observations underscore the growing importance of digitalisation across all aspects of the process – from manufacturing through to consumption. “Food waste reduction is part of the overall food manufacturing operations process too, but it is also the realisation that food waste is a source rich in organics
Ingredients Insight /
www.ingredients-insight.com
Sergey Ryzhov/
Shutterstock.com
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